Erased From History
by Living in a fantasy
Summary: It's been over ten years since Kira was eliminated and Mello and Matt went into hiding. As more documentaries and fictional movies pop up, Mello is fuming that his involvement in the case is largely ignored. Meanwhile, Matt just wishes Mello would stop obsessing for once in his life.


AN: I know I've not posted here in ages, and that it's been even longer since I did a Death Note story. I was inspired by the fact that a new movie is coming out and this just...happened. If any of my old readers are still around, hello and thanks for reading. And thanks to anyone new who is reading this.

I've stepped away from fanfiction the past few years, as I have been working on my own original work. If you're interested in it please shoot me a message. I'd love to keep you in the loop about when I release it, and I may end up putting some exclusive fanfiction on my blog.

A special thanks to my fiancé **Dlvvanzor** for beta reading this for me. We get married in less than a month, it's super exciting!

Disclaimer: I do not own DN, of course.

The neighbors of flat eight had gotten used to the yelling and thumping sounds coming from the surrounding walls. They had also gotten used to the _other_ thumping and shouting (more often moaning) coming from the flat next door. It was simply something you got used to when you lived in a flat, especially in a flat where they skipped background checks.

Today, though, the flat was quiet, much to the relief of the neighbors. Inside the small, cramped room, the only sounds came from the television in the corner and the music coming from the small speakers of the Nintendo Switch.

A man lay splayed across a brown leather sofa. The sofa was covered in tears and stains, and the man was covered by a sickening webbing of scars. He held a half-eaten chocolate bar in his hand, eyes locked on the small television. Around him were the remains of cigarette butts and a dozen or so discarded chocolate wrappers. The longer he watched the program, the larger his scowl became. "Matt," he barked, "are you watching this?"

Matt, who was sitting on a nearby chair hummed, not taking his eyes off the screen of the Nintendo Switch.

"Matt!" The man grabbed one of the nearby crumpled up chocolate wrappers and chucked it at the other. Matt deftly dodged the projectile without his fingers even slowing on the controls.

"Yes, Mello?"

"I asked if you're watching," the blond snapped, teeth sinking into the chocolate bar that was still at his side. "Are you seeing this bullshit?"

Matt briefly lifted his eyes from the game to take in several seconds of the TV program. "Yes I see it. It's another movie based off of Kira."

"Yagami," Mello corrected automatically. He hated using Kira's name. They had caught and killed the guy after all, they knew who he was so he didn't get to hide behind that name anymore. "And yes, that's my entire point. Are you watching this? It's yet another version, follows the premise of how everything happened, except once again L is the one who solves it!"

Matt just hummed again.

"We were there too," Mello complained, finishing up his chocolate and tossing the wrapper at the TV set. It bounced off "L's" face and landed on the floor. "Why are we never mentioned in any of these accounts! I know we supposedly died, as far as they know, but that should mean we're mentioned even further! Hell, _Near_ ," he snarled, "is almost never mentioned in the films. The documentaries, sure, but even in those all three of us are barely mentioned."

"I think most people don't even know I existed," Matt said, a small, amused smirk on his face. "But I know it drives you nuts to go unnoticed."

"It's not that," Mello said, though Matt simply snorted in response. "It's not! I just want credit where credit is due! Yagami never would have been caught if it weren't for me! Us," he added as an afterthought.

Matt shrugged. "How do you know? Near probably could have done it."

It took Mello only several seconds to go from his sprawled position on the couch to crouched over Matt's hair, a hand clenched in the fabric of Matt's shirt as he dragged the man closer to him. "What did you say?"

Unperturbed, Matt's finger found the pause button on the controler. "I said Near probably would have still figured it out."

For a moment it seemed like Mello would smack the game system out of Matt's hands, but instead he just shoved him back in his chair, stomping over to the couch and throwing himself back down on it. It had been over a decade since Kira was killed, and it seemed the years had helped Mello to relax a bit, if only a little.

What historians did know about Mello and Matt's involvement in the Kira case was fairly limited, anyway. It was known that they had both been successors of L, and that they had worked on investigating the case from underground, using less-than-legal means. It was known that they had helped make it possible for Kira to be caught, though the details were foggy in just about any media report or book. What was known was that they had both been killed. And that, of course, was completely inaccurate.

If they had been living underground during the investigation, it had only gotten more extreme immediately following the case. To Mello's annoyance, Near had actually been instrumental in helping their escape go smoothly. Near had been the one to provide the pair of them with fake documents to help them quickly and smoothly get out of the country. They had kept to themselves for over a year, moving frequently and keeping out of the public eye until the hype around Kira had slowed down.

They'd been living in this small flat in the outskirts of London for three years now. Matt figured they were probably safe while Mello, paranoid, insisted there were people out there that may still try to kill them, or worse, arrest them. Matt simply rolled his eyes and so they compromised with this small flat in a dangerous part of the city. The danger didn't bother Matt, because they could certainly take care of themselves, but he'd like to live somewhere with more space for a tech set up.

Matt could only hope that eventually, Mello would realize no one was looking for them. Everyone save Near thought they were dead, and Near had no reason to tell anyone otherwise. As far as Matt knew, Near was acting as the new L, taking on cases across the world that were impossible for anyone else to solve.

Matt set his game aside and crossed the room to stand in front of Mello. He nudged Mello's knee. Mello kicked him in response. Matt just looked at him, unmoved, and Mello sighed and moved his feet, giving space for Matt to sit.

"Mels," Matt said, voice soft with a twinge of teasing in it. This got Mello's attention, because that nickname was a fond one and Matt only used it when he was actually taking something serious for once. "You need to let this go." Matt hastened to speak more quickly as the familiar scowl crossed mello's face. "It's been over ten years, now. And we lived. We thought we'd die, you know?"

"I thought I'd die, I didn't plan for you to die," Mello muttered.

Matt smiled, one of those soft smiles he got every once in a blue moon around Mello. That smile never failed to make him both embarrassed and, though he hated to admit it, pleased. "Either way," Matt said, "the point is we didn't think we would both survive. But here we are. You still have chocolate, I have the new Zelda game." Matt shrugged. "This is good. Stop wishing people knew more about us. I know you're obsessed with being noticed but-"

"I am not," Mello muttered.

"You need to let it go," Matt continued. "Look at where we are." he indicated towards the flat. "The fact that we're barely acknowledged means we aren't in prison. And I know you hate Near, I do too," he quickly added. "But he's helped us stay under the radar. We can get a better place. You can get new forged documents and be an investigator, if you wanted."

"I hate L and Near getting all the credit," Mello snapped. "I made an impact. Everyone always said Near was the smartest, that he was number one. He wouldn't have done it without me!"

Matt nodded. "I know."

"I want _them_ , to know!"

"But who is them?" Matt asked. "Really, who is it? The world?" Mello said nothing. "L? He's dead, you know. Near? Near knows. He's just an arrogant arse. He's not going to admit it. You know that. I'm sure when Near talks at Wammy's House he mentions your part in the Kira case, so they know. Roger knows. Who else are you trying to impress?"

Mello was the one to break eye contact, directing his glare instead at the TV screen. He'd never thought of it as trying to impress people. He was smart. That was exceedingly obvious. He just hated that he was never acknowledged for it. His parents hadn't, his first orphanage hadn't, and then even at Wammy's, it had been acknowledged, but acknowledged as not enough. Second. Second tier.

"Mels." Mello's eyes flew to Matt's. Twice in one day? That had never happened before. "You don't have to be the best. Everyone knows you're smart. Ridiculously smart. Just...let it go." Matt shrugged. "Let them erase us from history if they want to. That title of L's successors can be off of us. You can do whatever you want. We don't have to rot away in here forever."

Mello frowned, eyes moving towards the TV without him even noticing. He could feel Matt watching him, but his eyes weren't moving from the credits, watching thousands of names fly by, all about the people who had made this fiction film. Based on a true story. His story.

Matt leaned down and kissed his head, surprisingly gently, before moving back to his chair and picking up his game. "Think about it," he said.

Mello glanced at him quickly before directing his gaze back to the screen. It wasn't that easy. He'd been fighting his entire life to be the best. To be the smartest. How was he supposed to just give that up? But it was true that for the past decade, he'd done nothing. He'd been holed up with Matt in shitty flats across multiple countries, still angry at L. At Near. Roger. Watari. He wondered if what Matt said was right. If he really could just...investigate on his own. Without anyone else. Without a reputation.

The credits were coming to a close. At the bottom of the screen was a dedication. ' **A special thanks to all the people who tirelessly fought and died to bring an end to Kira.** '

And it didn't mention him by name. It didn't tell his story. But maybe he could make a new story, and a new name for himself. Maybe.

He turned off the television and stood, eyes scanning the flat. "This place is a shithole," he said, kicking some of the nearby chocolate wrappers away. "We need to move. I'm not cleaning this place up."

Matt smiled from behind his screen. "Whatever you say."


End file.
